Long-billed Hermit vs Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Phaethornis longirostris compared with Archilochus colubris
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Long-billed Hermit | Ruby-throated Hummingbird |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Phaethornis longirostris | Archilochus colubris |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Trochilidae | Trochilidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | 8.5 cm (3.3 in) |
| Wingspan | 12.2 cm (4.8 in) | 11.0 cm (4.3 in) |
| Weight | 5.8 g (0.20 oz) | 3.1 g (0.11 oz) |
| Diet | Nectarivore visiting Heliconia, Costus, and banana flowers along forest understory routes. Takes small insects opportunistically. | Nectar from tubular flowers, supplemented with small insects and spiders for protein. Feeds at over … |
| Clutch Size | 2 | 2 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Size Comparison
Habitat Comparison
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Deciduous and mixed forests, woodland edges, gardens, and parks with flowering plants. Migrates across the Gulf of Mexico.
Song & Call Comparison
Long-billed Hermit
Pure, flute-like descending scale; smooth melodic phrase moving cleanly through successive notes, warm and round in timbre.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Soft, high-pitched chattering and twittering 'chee-dit'. Also produces a thin 'tik' call in flight. Wing beats create an audible high-pitched humming buzz during hovering.
Geographic Range & Migration
Long-billed Hermit
Widespread from southern Mexico through Central America to northwestern Colombia and western Ecuador. Found at 0–1,200 m.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Eastern North America from southern Canada to the Gulf Coast. Winters in Central America and southern Mexico.
Conservation Status
Long-billed Hermit
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
How to Tell Them Apart
Long-billed Hermit
Wire-crested Thorntail: males with long black wire-like crest; green gorget; white pectoral tufts; females with rufous-buff below; plain green
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Metallic green upperparts and greyish-white underparts. Males have a brilliant iridescent ruby-red gorget that appears black in poor light. Females lack the gorget.
Long, straight, thin black bill adapted for probing flowers
About These Birds
Long-billed Hermit
A large hermit hummingbird (15-17 cm) found in humid forests from Mexico to northwestern Colombia. Green plumage with dark face mask, long curved bill, and long, white-tipped tail. Nectarivore of forest undergrowth, an important pollinator of Heliconia flowers.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
The ruby-throated hummingbird is the only breeding hummingbird in eastern North America. These tiny birds beat their wings about 53 times per second and can fly backwards, sideways, and even briefly upside down. They make an extraordinary non-stop 800 km crossing of the Gulf of Mexico during migration.